Y/N and Bucky's time in Wakanda was needed and helpful after the previous months of chaos.
After three months away, they decide it's time to return to the Compound and get back to normal. Unfortunately for the Avengers, 'normal' means danger; someth...
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"You fucking piece of shit!" Austen spits.
"Careful, if you yell any louder, he might hear you," Lizzie teases, but Austen doesn't move from where he stands in front of the tv, arms crossed and glaring daggers. "Seriously, come sit down."
"He's just outed us to the entire world. They've got our pictures and our names plastered everywhere, and you can bet they're monitoring all surveillance feeds and social media for our faces."
"We'll deal with it. We can use the blockers when necessary, but I don't think the surveillance of this town is accessible, even for S.H.I.E.L.D. Likely a limited number of closed-circuit broadcast signals, possibly even direct to tape or drive. Don't worry about it."
I hear their words, but they don't register.
Did they not just see what I saw?
"Where did Atticus go the other night?"
Austen turns around and opens his mouth to speak, but he's cut off before he can even begin.
"I told you," Atticus says from behind the couch, and I jump in surprise, "I went on a supply run and to prep for the next mission."
"But where? You haven't even told us what the next mission is. Where did you go?"
Atticus walks around the couch and comes to a stop beside the tv. "Proof's in the pudding, isn't it? I went to D.C."
"Did you kill him?" I ask quietly.
"Do you believe him? That I killed the ambassador?"
"I don't know..."
"No. I didn't kill him."
His voice is steady. He's looking me in the eye. He's not fidgeting.
But Atticus has always been good at lying.
"Okay."
"You don't seem convinced."
I shrug. "If you say you didn't, I believe you... It's just..."
"What?"
You've changed.
You killed those men last week
You were in D.C.
"We weren't supposed to kill anyone... That wasn't our mission."
"The people we're after are bad, you shouldn't feel for them."
"They're still people."
"People who hurt other people."
"How are we any different?" I bite out.
"We're doing it for the right reason."
"There is never a right reason..."
"What is going on with you?"
"I... it's just... is this justice? Is it actually right? Should we be doing what we're doing?"
"As opposed to what? Sitting back and letting all this shit just happen?"
"Yes... We could run."
Atticus scoffs, and my stomach sinks.
I shouldn't have said anything.
"Where would we go? What would we do? Hydra would find us; S.H.I.E.L.D. would find us."
"They haven't found us yet. We could leave the country, go somewhere and disappear," I say, wishing my voice didn't sound so desperate.
Wishing Lizzie and Austen would step in.
Wishing Atticus would see how scared I am.
"Stop being so naïve. You know why they haven't found us yet. And you know Hydra is everywhere. We wouldn't make it to Canada before they'd have the G.H.O.S.T.'s after us. We follow through and stay on target. We aren't finished yet."
"But—"
"Enough, Ripley. This conversation is finished."
Anger replaces my worry, and it burns in my chest. "You're not my superior, and you're not my parent," I snap. "I'd really appreciate if everyone stopped treating me like a child!"
"Then stop acting like one!" Atticus roars, only needing to take two steps to tower over me. My eyes widen and I suck in a breath at his sudden rage, pressing myself as far into the couch back as I can. "I may not be your superior, or your parent, but I've protected you like a brother since you were fifteen. The only reason we're alive is because of me, so think about that the next time you want to throw everything I've done for you in my face. You know how Hydra works and you know why we can't just run away. I'm doing my best to keep us all alive and do what needs to be done—you're not going to sabotage that because you're struggling with your morality! Guess what? No one is innocent. Not me, not Captain America, and not you. You've done shit that keeps you awake at night—"
"I didn't want to—"
"Doesn't matter. You still did it. But there are people who do want to do those bad things, and will continue to do them unless we stop them. We are helping bring order to the world," he says, voice growing quieter and gentler. "Stop with the ideas of running away. They will never let us be free, regardless of what they promised. Accept it. Because what we're doing is right. Just keep repeating that to yourself. Like the mantras we had when we were on base. Okay?"
My throat burns and I nod once, finally breaking eye contact.
"Dinner will be ready in half an hour," he announces before stepping back and walking towards the kitchen. "Don't worry about the news."
When he's gone, I feel my body relax and my fingers loosen from the couch cushion.
I shouldn't have said anything.
I made him so upset.
He's just trying to protect me.
I let out a breath.
What we're doing is right.
I can feel Lizzie and Austen's eyes on me, but I ignore their stares.
